The university wrestling circuit in the US has been rocked by 20-year-old Chattanooga wrestler Zeke Washington’s death.
Who was Zeke Washington?
Ezekiel Washington was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was a promising wrestler and two time Oklahoma State finalist with Owasso High School.
He graduated in 2019 after records of 32 wins and five losses as a senior and 31 wins and three losses as a junior.
Zeke went on to wrestle with Chattanooga Mocs wrestling team. They represent the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga as a Member of the Southern Conference of NCAA Division I wrestling.
According to the roster page on the wrestling team’s site, Zeke had four sisters, Alexis, Patricia, Chantel, Laschia and Maria, and one brother, Jeremy.
According to a GoFundMe fundraiser set up to cover funeral costs, Zeke recently lost his mother. He is survived by his father Joe.
RIP Zeke Washington: Death of young wrestler confirmed
Wrestler Zeke Washington’s death was confirmed by his team on social media on 5 April 2021.
In a post on Twitter, Chattanooga Wrestling offered their ‘heartfelt condolences’ to Zeke’s loved ones but offered no insight into the cause of death.
The post read: “Our heartfelt condolences go out to Zeke’s family, teammates, coaches, support staff and the entire wrestling program during this difficult time.
“Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers as we all mourn the passing of one of our own.”
Zeke Washington’s wrestling career
Zeke Washington was highly regarded as a wrestler at UTC.
“Zeke comes here with a great work ethic and attitude,” stated University of Tennessee Chattanooga head coach Kyle Ruschell when Zeke joined the team.
The coach added: “He is just a work horse and does what is asked of him. The depth in our wrestling room is starting to get fun to watch every day around those weights. These guys have to bring it.”
Ruschell added further that Zeke was coached by Mike Ryan at high school level and said he expected the young man to not “back down from anyone.”
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